Michael Sam wins 2014 Arthur Ashe Award

On July 16th, Michael Sam, an American football defensive end for the St. Louis Rams of the National Football League (NFL) and first openly-gay NFL player, won the 2014 Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the 2014 ESPY awards. The Ashe Award is awarded annually to a "member of the sports world who best exhibits courage in the face of adversity." Michael Sam echoed the words of Arthur Ashe in his acceptance speech Wednesday night: "Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can..." Sam shared the inspiring story of how he gave courage to a young woman who considered suicide over telling her family she was a lesbian, and he encouraged youth who felt they didn't fit in to have the courage to be yourself. Arthur Ashe was the first African American tennis player to have won the singles title at Wimbledon, Australian Open, and the US Open and was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by U.S. President Bill Clinton in 1993.